


A Demon In The Doorway

by AVeryConfusedBird



Series: Assholes Of The Round Table [7]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Demons, Devils, Drinking, Drinking & Talking, Fae & Fairies, Fae Magic, Faeries - Freeform, Fictional Religion & Theology, First Meetings, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Kissing, M/M, Making Out, Motorcycles, Mutual Pining, Mythology References, One Night Stands, Original Mythology, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-16
Updated: 2019-06-16
Packaged: 2020-05-13 05:10:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19244497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AVeryConfusedBird/pseuds/AVeryConfusedBird
Summary: It’d been a less than average shift – the sky full of thunder and loud flashes of light with the raging storm outside, splattering against the walls and ground with an angry force only growing angrier by the minute. Perfect weather in the middle of fucking July. His shoulders were itching, waiting to be able to zip about upstairs on maybe in Arthurs horde the second it had ended but no, today was dragging, time feeling as slow as it did in the wilds, the tick of the wall clock behind him driving him mental. Sure, days like this were good for business, people coming in to investigate as a way to escape the storm outside, seeking hot drinks or somewhere to dry off, but they were the worst kind of days for Cornelius, dull and dreary as boring as one could be.Until, a new figure walked in.Cornelius meets Galahad for the first time.





	A Demon In The Doorway

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!! please, let me know what you think in the comments, all kudos and comments are greatly appreciated!!!

It’d been interesting moving into a house for Cornelius. Damp raining days and nights, taking solitude under great old oaks and willows for protection from the weather, to being able to shut the cold and wind out with the flick of a lock. River baths and being unrestricted in the wilds to having to be decent nearly constantly – Not that he was complaining too much, clothes however restrictive were warm, comfortable and cute. An expression of self that he dearly loved about the mortal realms. There were things he didn’t like – like how things had to be cleaned if they wanted to stay clean. Soap and bubbles were an endless pain in the ass. Hiding his wings constantly grew annoying, his back itched near constantly as he was desperate to get some use of out them, spending nearly an hour every night zipping around his apartment in flight, knocking off and into who knows what trying to get out some of his frustrations.

But by far, the worst thing was how _Disappointing_ mortals were.

They had no fun! Or at least, his definition of fun. Teasing tricks were way too easy to pull over on them, no thrill of the guessing games. They were so insistent on being so serious – Everything was a matter of life or death, there was no slowing down. And for all the clothing and styles of fashions they had invented nobody _actually wore any_ because they’d “standout” like it was a bad thing! Guinevere had tried explaining why some felt that way and the way people had treated her over it, but it fell on dull ears, too disappointed over reality to listen to her fully.

 

 

It’d been a less than average shift – the sky full of thunder and loud flashes of light with the raging storm outside, splattering against the walls and ground with an angry force only growing angrier by the minute. Perfect weather in the middle of _fucking July_. His shoulders were itching, waiting to be able to zip about upstairs on maybe in Arthurs horde the second it had ended but no, today was _dragging_ , time feeling as slow as it did in the wilds, the tick of the wall clock behind him driving him mental. Sure, days like this were good for business, people coming in to investigate as a way to escape the storm outside, seeking hot drinks or somewhere to dry off, but they were the worst kind of days for Cornelius, dull and dreary as boring as one could be.

Until, a new figure walked in. 

He’d been slouched over the counter, his hands absent minded patting against the sides as if it would make the clock tick faster, when the bell by the door had gone off as it swung opens. Eyes lifting lazily to look at the new customer. Only for his entire body to near shoot up in interest.

 

Tall, Dark, and drenched. He’d never seen someone who dressed like this man before. At least 6 and a half feet in height, maybe more, he was lithe in form but certainly toned if ever so slightly underneath it all. he had a young face – sharp features, dark eyes heavy lidded and decorated with eyeliner, his face was decorated with many a piercing, most notably the snakebites that decorated his lips and the black hoop through his sternum, the ones in his ears hidden mostly within hair. His long fine black hair was soaked, clinging to his face where it could, jagged bangs long in length and pushed to the sides, tucked behind the ears to be hidden amongst the rest of his soggy wet hair. The young man wore a pair of heavy-duty boots, blacked jeans beginning to look ragged from frequent wear - visible rips and what appeared to be attempts at patching them. He wore plain dark grey t-shirt that had seen as much wear as his pants, scooping lower around his neck and ripping in places, covered by a heavy looking leather jacket, a faint barely legible print of some kind decorating the right side of it.

The figure looked around the store, before his eyes settled on Cornelius who realised he’d been staring. Quickly looking away, he listened as the figure made his way towards him, only to move past him and to the right, where the quiet area was. Breathing a sigh of relief, he peaked his eyes up, watching again in awe as the figure pulled a book off the shelf, before he settled himself in a corner by a radiator, stripping himself of the leather jacket and boots.

 

 

 

It was just Galahad’s luck for the weather to be as it was – too early in the morning for any of his usual places to be open, he’d been stuck outside in the cold for too long now. Not even his hellfire blood was keeping the shivering at bay _. Aren’t mortal beaches were supposed to be sunny? Is that the point of going to them in the summer?_ He’d thought to himself, as his eyes scanned for the best place to avoid the downpour.  
If Galahad was a better man, he’d had been more honest about his feelings. He was starting to miss home. Miss his bed. Miss his brothers. He may have even admitted that he was _wrong_ to have decided to do what he’d done – the thrill of defying his father’s orders, the thrill of running away, life on the road, hopping from place to place. Oh, it’d been fun to begin with, but now it was beginning to get…frightfully dull. The mortal fun he’d been denied had gotten repetitive and were not nearly as enticing as everyone had told him in stories. The mortals had changed considerably since the last time a demon he’d had the joy of meeting had been to the surface world– they weren’t as nearly rebellious, not as loud or as harsh as they had once been, willing to overthrow their leaders over minor disputes, it had become disappointing to say the least.  
Galahad continued along the soggy streets, eyes glancing between the open shops – as charming as they were, he needed some place long term. It’s only when his eyes settled on the wide windows of Evermoores’ Magic and More he decided it’d be the best place. It was risky– if it was a true magic store, there was few doubts they’d know what he was the moment he stepped inside, but it looked more like a library then an actual store from the outside, signs of books to rent. As the thunder and lightning crackled overhead, too close to comfort, he decided that the bookstore was his better of the options.  
As he stepped inside, the little bell above giving a small chime he was hit with a friendly warmth. Other tourists of the area appeared to have a similar idea to him – avoid the storm by going in a library. It was nice, comforting, but definitely a true magic store – the scent of the arcane faint, but there none the less. He let his eyes darken, only for a moment and looked over the patrons, glancing around for supernatural creatures like himself – A couple of young witches were sat by the window, a group of elves and dwarves likely students at the university, all curled up in a study spot in the centre of the building. And lastly, his eyes settled on the figure behind the counter.

 

If Galahad was a better man, he might have called him cute. Fey aura bright and beautiful to Galahad, a faint golden glow that matched the rest of what could only be described as walking sunshine. Soft facial features framed by the most beautiful hair, it was relatively short and parted to the right, which was angled so that it partially obscured his left eye – almost like woven gold in colour, matching the most beautiful golden eyes. Big, bright and full of a magical wonder that only fey could manage, he was a sight to behold.

However, Galahad was not a better man. His first, and most important thought was how he’d enjoy _ruining_ him.

 

Galahad pushed the thoughts back as the fey looked away quickly, probably already aware of the others nature as he made towards the largest source of heat he could find within the store. Plucking a couple of books from the shelves, absentmindedly to blend in with the other patrons, he took a seat besides the radiator, shedding his jacket and boots as he settled his back against the warmth, flicking open his book.

 

Safir had felt it like a disturbance in the force. A sudden presence of death beyond his own – nothing but bad news to the small store. His head shot up from his book, looking about the backroom, trying to focus in on where he’d felt it. Raising up, he followed it out backrooms into the main store, looking towards Cornelius  
“Is…. everything okay?” Cornelius jumped, looking to him with a start  
“Just fine, why’d you ask?”  
“I felt something…. a presence. What’s got you so jumpy” Safir mused, eyes glancing around the patrons of the store  
“Nothing you need to worry about.” Cornelius looked away, to a certain point, directing Safir to the culprit for the feeling. Scowling, his eyes wandered over the other man, taking in his appearance. Human, from the looks of it, but a lingering evil from his aura.  
“Keep your eyes on him, but try to avoid contact” Cornelius scowled at Safir’s words  
“Oh no no no! you are NOT ruining things before me before I even get the ball rolling. He’s the most interesting thing I’ve seen in _weeks_.” Cornelius hissed out, causing Safir’s eyes to roll  
“Look, it’s a dead thing. You probably can’t feel it but he’s…. off putting. I can feel it – death walks around him like it does me. Do NOT get near to him.” with one final warning, Safir was satisfied at Cornelius pout, returning to the backroom. However, no matter how he tried to focus, he couldn't shake the feeling from his mind.

 

Well now of course, the sensible thing for Cornelius to do would be to head his friends warning and leave the mysterious stranger alone. But then came the glances across the store his way, watching curiously as he would turn the page, eyes wandering over the words mouth moving slowly, mimicking the words as he said them in his head. He was practically mesmerising for Cornelius; he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the intricate tattooing down the others left arm. Cornelius swore he knew the symbols somehow, Magical being the major explanation – he did work in a magic shop after all. However, the stranger didn’t scream highly intelligent wizard like Safir, or even bubbly charismatic witch like Guinevere, Nor the strength of a dragon heart like Arthur, or even the intimidation and adrenaline that Lance practically radiated. He couldn’t place what was different about the stranger no matter how hard he tried.

And it took 3 more warnings before he lost his patience with his friends.  
Guinevere had caught him staring, placing her hands on his shoulders causing him to jump in his spot.  
“Hey Tinker, what are you looking at?” Guinevere smiled, eyes flickering over to where the mysterious stranger that had captured the Fey’s attention sat, however the only face she could pull is confusion as she glanced between the two very much opposites, Cornelius attempted to explain himself, stumbling over his words  
“Nothing I mean who- no Its really nothing don’t I-” Guinevere held up a hand as she cut him off  
“Look I’m not gonna judge but I can guarantee that guys gonna be bad news to you baby cakes” She pinched his cheeks gently as he pouted  
“Don’t look at me like that, makes me feel guilty”  
“Good! Feel guilty!” Cornelius pouted, causing Guinevere to giggle at how he looked with his cheeks between her hands  
“Safir said the same thing. Don’t go near him but have you * _looked_ * at him?” Cornelius muttered, and Guinevere cocked her eyebrow up  
“I have yes, and he looks like a fuck boy.” Guinevere smiled, releasing his cheeks  
“A what?” Cornelius rubbed his cheeks where she had pinched him, continuing to pout still  
“A bad dude, not worth your time, only there to use you. Looks so good just to lure you in and then boom you’ve got a bad break up and that is not how you want your first romance to end cupcake”

 

Then came Lance of all people.  
Lance had at least _waited_  to speak up unlike some of the others.  
“Eyes on your job Twinkle Toes. Tall dark and brooding isn’t the one for you” the werewolf’s gruff voice had jostled him as he quickly looked over towards Lance.  
“I have…no idea what you’re talking about” Cornelius huffed, crossing his arms as he looked the other direction  
“Sure you don’t Twinkle Toes. Look, just…be careful okay? People like him are bad news.” Lance rolled his eyes and petted Cornelius hair, only to have his hands slapped away  
“Why do you all keep saying that? It’s not like he’s doing anything bad”  
“We don’t need to see it to know it’s coming Cornelius – men like him are bad news. He’s likely involved with crime; he’s more than likely involved with drugs and he’s most definitely involved with drink – you don’t want to go down that path.” Lance looked at Cornelius who only deflated at the use of his real name. Lance didn’t understand what Cornelius muttered in his own language  
“Promise you’ll stay safe Cornelius?”  
“I Promise”

 

And then _ARTHUR_ had stopped him – the mysterious stranger wasn’t even in the room, but Arthur had still thought it his place to catch Cornelius by the back of his t-shirt, gently shuffling him back until they were face to face. Cornelius only looked confused as Arthur grinned down at him  
“So, a little birdy tells me that our pretty little pixie boy has a little bit of a paramour” Arthur watched as Cornelius’ face quickly switched between confused, to surprise, before finally setting on seething _rage_. Arthur jumped back as Cornelius screamed, tugging on his ears as he did  
“WHY DO YOU PEOPLE KEEP CORNERING ME ABOUT THIS?! He’s fine! You don’t know him Arthur! Nobody has even SPOKEN a word to him! How is he any DIFFERENT than anyone else!?” Cornelius had screeched from the high heavens in the hallway. Arthur waiting until his rage had subsided enough to let him speak  
“Look, Cornelius it’s less about the guy and more about you – we don’t want you getting hurt! His tattoos aren’t _good_  Cornelius, we’ve read them! They’re warning signs!” Arthur had tried to plead but Cornelius had made his mind up, as he’d stormed away in a huff, slamming and locking his apartment door behind him.

 

Within a couple of days, He’d formed a plan.

Every day without fail since, the stranger would come in nearly first thing in the morning, browse some books, sit and read until late in the afternoon once he was dry from the near constant rain they’d been having, before he’d up and leave disappearing to the gods know where. Lance, Guinevere, Arthur and even _Safir_ had left to go investigate these storms – they’d theorised that they weren’t natural, leaving the young fey and the old man as the only pair in the shop. He’d slowly been letting the bookshelves near where the man sat get empty purposefully, so he’d have reason to be hanging around there, maybe strike up a conversation. That was the plan at least, right up until the nerves hit him once he got within 10 feet of the man.  
He had quietly dragged his trolley of books over, eyes looking towards the man, watching him through the empty shelves, eyes drifting back and forth between the books he was stacking and where the strange man sat, he’d barely registered that the man had looked up from his book, and was standing at the opposite side of the bookshelf from him, dark eyes peering down at him. He’d squeaked in surprise, immediately averting his eyes, causing the taller to laugh and _fuck_ was it attractive.  
“You can say hello you know, I don’t bite. Unless you’re into that” Cornelius tried to hide his face behind the book in his hands, face flushed a deep red as he let out a small giggle.  
“My names Galahad. What’s yours?”

 

It was needless to say, a surprise, to them both when they discovered how well they meshed together – Cornelius was wrapped around Galahad’s little finger in minutes, sweet compliments that caused the fey to blush, burying his head in his sweater paws with every compliment, face cherry red with the sweetest blush. And it took moments for Galahad to be wrapped around Cornelius little finger. Teasing comments, tricks and traps set to cause the larger man to fumble worked around – finally a challenge for them both, someone who could keep up with the teasing and the tempting. Both bringing out the best and worst in each other over the hours they’d talked for the day, it is growing dark by the time Galahad had left, the rain long since over. It came a further surprise to Cornelius when he heard the tapping of rocks against the window later that night.

 

Galahad had done his best to avoid the Fey’s flatmates, able to taste their distaste for him in the air as fresh as the drying rain, he’d found himself under Cornelius balcony, throwing little stones at the glass doors. When they slid open and his little face peaked over the edge, he lit up like a Christmas tree  
“Galahad? What are you doing here?” Cornelius had practically yelled down, Galahad made a motion for him to keep quiet, eyes looking towards the windows of the other residents hoping they’d not been alerted.  
“There’s a concert in a local club. My kind of style. Wanted to know if you were interested in coming with me?” Cornelius couldn’t have agreed faster, practically throwing on the darkest clothes he owned, pulling on a pair of old boots, he quickly climbed down from the balcony fire exist, chasing Galahad into the night as he was tugged along by his new eager friend.

 

It was into the early hours of the morning when they found themselves sat on the fountain in the city square, alone under the light of the moon and the lamps, Galahads leathers tossed around Cornelius shoulders, the smaller leaned up against his chest humming happily, deep in conversation when it’d hit Galahad.  
“Shitting fuck” He’d not realised he’d muttered it out, only when the bottle was lowered from Cornelius mouth and a brow raised in confusion did Galahad ask  
“You’re over 18, right? Like Jesus fuck I just took you to a metal club and spent the entire night getting you drinks” Galahads brows furrowed in concern, watching Cornelius as he choked on the drink with a laugh  
“Underage drinking is where you draw the line at law breaking but stealing a motorbike is fine? Interesting. But no – I’m 19. Barely, by like 2 months. But I’m legal by all means.” Cornelius finished his bottle, resting it on the side of the fountain. Relief rushed over Galahad with an audible sigh, he wrapped his arm around Cornelius waist.  
“First of all, it’s technically not stealing if it was my bike in the first place. But it makes what I’d planned next a lot easier.” Cornelius titled his head up to him, smile on his face cheers red from the liquor. perfect as Galahad leaned down, pressing a kiss to his lips gently, slowly easing him into it, moving his hands to hold onto his waist. Cornelius had leant into the kiss just as easily, and maybe a little too eagerly, as he barely had any time to register as the pair went toppling backwards, Galahads arms failing, only barely managing to catch himself on the edge of the fountain wall with one hand, the other plunged into the water as he caught himself at the bottom of the fountain, the pairs eyes wide in shock before they erupted into laughter.  
“Lets…. take this to somewhere warmer”

 

 

It was his alarm blaring that had Cornelius regretting his life choices. Head thumping, his arms scrambled to hit the snooze button, sitting up eyes squinting at the light filtering in. It was only then that he registered exact what had happened last night as he looked over his own body. He looked like he’d been _mauled_. Teeth and claw marks too large and too deep to be what he had previously thought belonged to Galahad, who up until this point he thought nothing more than a human. It was when he heard Galahads voice from his doorway that he remembered why he looked like he’d been mauled. Galahad stood there in full shift, all 7’6 of his _demonic_ glory. Wearing one of Cornelius larger sheets around his waist and over his shoulder, having to duck under doorways to get through, mindful of the black horns that came from his forehead. Black eyes scanning over the barely awake Fey’s features as he gathered his thoughts. Of all the things Cornelius had expected, it was never this.  
“Earth to Cornelius, or has our brain taken a walk in the fey wilds?” Galahad chuckled, seating himself next to the other, putting his hand gently against Cornelius’ cheek, his hand large enough to cover the entire left side of his face, thumbs gently stroking over his cheek. Cornelius hadn’t expected the touch to be so gentle, so warm. So…. Loving, almost. He raised his own hand, resting it on top of Galahads, tiny in compression.  
“No, no I’m here just….t-trying to register what happened. I think I remember most of it? I-I don’t think I remembered much about this part however” Galahads surprise at his words was visible  
“You…couldn’t tell I was a demon?” Cornelius shook his head continuing.  
“No, I knew something was different about you, but I was expecting something like a necromancer. Not a demon.” Cornelius looked away at this, Galahads shoulders slumping  
“Ah, very well then. Well, what I said was I hope you don’t mind I borrowed your washing machine and took a shower; I wasn’t exactly…presentable” He pulled his hand away, Body visibly shrinking as he let himself drop back down to his mortal form, pulling the fabric around himself tighter, voice trying to deceive the fey, eyes looking away from Cornelius. Cornelius pouted at the loss of the hand, wings folding downwards as he did, sitting himself up  
“No, I don’t mind, you’re fine to hang out here until they’re done” He swung his legs over the side of the bed, biting his lip slightly as he continued  
“But I had a lot of fun. And I’d love to do it again” Galahad turned his head towards him at this, looking confused for a moment  
“Really?”  
“Very much so, it’s the most fun I’ve had since moving into the damn mortal realm” He smiled as Galahad did.  
“Demon Sex and all?”  
“Demon sex and all. Trust me when I say I’m _very_ happy to try that again. Maybe not now, because quite frankly I think It’s going to take multiple potions to stop the pain that is starting to register. But…you know, if you ever want a little fun without the strings you know where to find me” Galahad laughed as Cornelius got up, grabbing a hold of another blanket, wrapping it around himself as he left Galahad alone in his empty room.

 

And that’s how it continued for the following few months, Galahad turning up at Cornelius balcony at the very least twice a week, throwing stones before sneaking the fey child out to have some fun around town – whether it be taking him to see bands, or just to a bar to sit and drink and chat, catching up as friends did, or taking him out on his old motorcycle for a ride down the roads, before finding each other in varying states of drunken company on a night.

 

But that’s not where either of them wanted it to stay.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks again for reading!!  
> if you want to know about updates they can be found on my twitter and tumblr!!  
> [Here is my twitter](https://twitter.com/VeryConfuseBirb)  
> [Here is my Tumblr](http://v-e-r-y-confused-bird.tumblr.com)  
> Here are a bunch of spottily playlists based around this work!  
> [Arthur](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/55P4pGCOGIuFgaYFentK08?si=dCoxxPpFRa6a8tDSSFgbXA), [Annie](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/1BGxY5s5O60zVdoQYelKZW?si=7YEkW-0BRue1sRXpYxcRdA), [Cornelius](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/6k6xHTBjNISTXeLyiuODzZ?si=kNmlHT4JSvuyr-ef6JuE4g), [Galahad](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/6NkkcqxsMWkWgr0Eh8nKdL?si=gPpDeStgQMS7ay6m39X1_A), [Guinevere](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/4P63FRzSZ1CgoLPE5fu6Zv?si=m6u_v3EbTSmO3qZ28KbQEg), [Lance](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/6AshjuZs1RgpzkTqPlLbo1?si=6EzE8-5cTG2qD-WAs2lUtA), [Percival](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/4ltHxaOgDtrz2stmLgRELA?si=PAal0YHsTh6M6sneeYWqnw), [Safir](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/7qhONf7XBolzojW6Spm2gI?si=hk89MbQYTvSpGhTC_Bwzpg)  
> Bonus Playlist based around [Galahad, Percival and Cornelius' relationship](https://open.spotify.com/user/xmtqkjkms8l37j1c4l44maf7i/playlist/2qW4SUv5e2uiG8vr1hdZaQ?si=2mBy8OKETcSE5ryHI5XAZg)


End file.
